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Academic Advising

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Office Hours

The Central Academic Advising department is open Monday to Friday from 8:30 am to 4:30 pm.
Some evening appointments are available on Monday and Tuesday at the Surrey campus.

PLEASE NOTE: At certain times of the year, during registration, for example, Academic Advising faces an increased demand for services. Students are advised to plan ahead and to take into consideration that during these peak periods, Academic Advisors are booked well in advance.

Types of Service

We offer Academic Advising to Current and RecentlyAdmitted Students through:

NOTE: Prospective Students are encouraged to speak with our Future Students Office click here for more details

Phone Numbers

if you need assistance with booking an appointment please feel free to contact the number below:

604-599-2828

Who Are the Central Academic Advisors?

KPU Surrey

Herbie Atwal (Coordinator)

Herbie has been employed at Kwantlen Polytechnic University since 2005. His journey at KPU began as the SPARK Education Program Advisor/Coordinator where he worked with non-traditional students’ bridge the gap between high school and post-secondary education, where students were encouraged to recognize their potential and strive towards their academic and career aspirations.

Herbie currently holds the position as the Coordinator of Educational Advising; here he continues to work with first-year students with their transition in to higher education. Through progressive encouragement and mentorship, Herbie works closely with the students in developing an educational plan that will reflect the student’s ability and strengths.

Herbie has earned his Masters of Education in Counseling Psychology from SFU in 2013. He also holds a Bachelors of Arts in Child and Youth Care Counseling with a Specialization in Child Welfare from UFV (2007).

Mike Harris

Mike has enjoyed 12 years at Kwantlen Polytechnic University as both an Academic Advisor and as a Job Prep Instructor/Placement Specialist in the APPD program (Access Program for People with Disabilities). Prior to working for KPU, Mike spent five years as an Employment Specialist/Caseload Manager for people with disabilities. Mike enjoys helping students as they progress through their programs and meeting their educational and career goals. Mike graduated from Simon Fraser University with a Bachelor of Arts degree in History and a minor in Psychology

Tanya Fuller

Tanya graduated from Kwantlen Polytechnic University in 2003 with a BBA in Entrepreneurial Leadership. She started her career at KPU in 1996 and has worked in various departments across the Institution; she moved to the Central Advising team in 2009. Tanya enjoys serving students and assisting them in obtaining their academic career goals. In the past, Tanya was a competitive figure skater, competing at the national level. Her current hobbies include kick-boxing, running half marathons and ocean kayaking.

Jocelyn Choy

Jocelyn has been with KPU since 2003. She has worked as a Business Degree Advisor, Cooperative Education Instructor and now an Academic Advisor at Central Advising. Jocelyn’s other employment experiences include working as sessional marketing instructor at UFV. Jocelyn has both Bachelor and Master Degrees in Business Administration from Woodbury University at Burbank, California. As an Academic Advisor at KPU, Jocelyn enjoys helping students to discover and achieve their academic and career goals.

Meena Purewal-Sidhu

Meena graduated from University of the Fraser Valley in 2003 with a BA in Child and Youth Care. As part of her program she worked with the Ministry of Children and Families (Mental Health Team) and for the Abbotsford Youth Commission where she coordinated the “Just for Girls” program at a local elementary school. Meena joined KPU in 2003 where she worked as a Program Advisor for the SPARK Education Program for eight years. In 2011, she joined the Educational Advising team and currently advises students at both the Surrey and Richmond campuses. Meena enjoys motivating students to achieve their goals. Outside of work she is active at the gym and enjoys spending time with friends and shopping. Meena speaks fluent Punjabi.

KPU Langley

Nicki Pearson

Nicki has 13 years of experience working in a Post-Secondary environment, including 7 years’ experience as an Academic Advisor at KPU. She graduated from SFU with a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Psychology as well as a Certificate in Liberal Arts, and has completed additional courses in both Introduction to Counselling Skills and Career Counselling. Nicki enjoys working with students from a variety of backgrounds and is committed to helping them achieve their educational goals.

KPU Tech (Cloverdale)

Jatinder Kaur

Jatinder Kaur graduated from Kwantlen Polytechnic University in 1998 with a diploma in Business Administration. After graduation, she went to Simon Fraser University to continue her studies in Bachelor of Arts major in Economics, graduating in 2001.

Jatinder’s career at KPU began as Student Assistant and then Admissions Assistant. She became an Academic Advisor in 2007. She has served as a member of NACADA, BCADA, and the Kwantlen Advising Council and is a presenter at the annual Course Planning 101 workshop to first year students. She enjoys helping and encouraging students to achieve their educational goals and success in their personal and professional endeavours. Jatinder enjoys baking, volunteering, community involvement, and her family.

Fluent in Punjabi, Jatinder is also able to assist KPU students who prefer this as their first language.

KPU Richmond

Masako Ishihara

Masako started working for International admissions at KPU and came to Central Advising in 2007. Prior to the experience in KPU, she worked in diverse fields from marketing to teaching social awareness to elementary school children. She enjoys living in Vancouver where there is a diverse culture especially sampling the various foods on offer. She excels at supporting students with their issues and needs: primarily, striving hard to guide students towards meeting their academic goals with the available resources at KPU. She holds Bachelor of Arts in Sociology major from Japan and a French language certificate from Laval University in Quebec.

Amy Yiu

Amy Yiu came to KPU as an international student and graduated from KPU with an Associate of Science Degree in General Science. After that, she transferred to UBC to earn her Bachelor of Science in Dietetics and is a registered dietitian by profession. She is currently enrolled in the Bachelor of Science (Major in Applied Psychology) at KPU. She has worked in various departments across the institution. She is very passionate in assisting students in achieving their academic goals and personal growth.

She has been actively participating KPU’s student and community activities and has considerable experience working with student volunteers, mentors and mentees through the Student Life and Development at KPU, as well as the tri-mentoring program at UBC. She is honored to be the recipient of the 2015 Dietitians of Canada Member Recognition Award (Leadership) for volunteerism and achievements that contribute to the advancement of the profession.

She highly recommends students to get involved with and to start networking with the professionals in their desired fields and volunteer in various organizations. It is a great way to gain experience and to meet new people!